Hey guys, my introduceyourself post

Hi guys, I hope you are all ok.
So, I made my first post yesterday, and totally forgot about introducing myself to you all. Sorry about that.

My name is Rich, i'm now 41 years young, and right now im so happy with life. However, this wasnt always the case.

I'd lead a very happy childhood, 2 loving parents, nice family around me (cousins etc). I have no brothers or sisters.
I played ALOT of football (Soccer) and athletics (sprinting and long jump/Triple jump) all at a young age.

Anyway come 2004, a month before my 27th birthday, my dad passed away very suddenly through having a brain hemmorhage, with this happening so fast, he was healthy, 61 year old, liked walkking alot, ate well (but did have the odd cigarette here and there) but still diddnt see it comming, never had a chance to say goodbye, it hit me so hard.
In fact, it destroyed me. I started having panic attacks, I diddnt want to leave the house, every time I had a headache, I was convinced it was a brain hemmorhage and that I was going to die.
I gained so much weight, comfort eating and not doing ANY exercise whatsoever. I was in such a dark place, and at one point, I was really considering taking my own life.
I was single, nobody interested in me whatsoever, no children of my own... what did I have to live for? Probably I was too much of a coward to follow up with it, and worried about how it would affect my friends, relatives etc.

The years passed and I slowly improved over time.
Comming into the Spring of 2017, I thought enough was enough. We only live once right?
I was determined I was not going to be another statistic. So, I went for CBT sessions (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) and slowly this helped. It was not easy AT ALL. But I knew it wouldnt be, so I pereservered.
At the same time, I joined a new gym with my friend. This too, was hard (meeting new people, signing up etc) I felt fat, ugly and not worth anyones time. BUT I just had to put myself through this as hard as it all was.
Over time, the CBT sessions were helping, and the gym was also going well, slowly losing weight eating better.
My confidence started to grow. Confidence breeds confidence..right?
By the end of 2017, I was in not bad shape, and I was feeling so damn good about myself.

And 2018 has gotten even better, I am able to socialise more, go out, my body is now quite lean and starting to see my abs, something I never dreamed of. I love cooking from fresh, going out and about, hitting the gym. I still have not found that special someone yet, however I have had alot more interest than I did a few years ago.

Im sorry if this story came across as dark, maybe a bit too much info on a second post, but I also want others to know, that no matter how low you feel, how bad things get, there is always a way out, you just have to stay focused and try to make positive changes/thoughts etc. Life is never plain sailing. If my story can help/motivate AT LEAST ONE person out there, then that will put a smile on my face.

Have a great day guys... Stay positive :)